WWE NXT Review - June 29, 2016

The present collides with the future.

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Alexa Bliss def. Carmella

I remember the series of matches these two had when Blake and Murphy were feuding with Enzo Amore and Big Cass last spring and they were pretty deplorable. That said, both women have improved immensely in the ring since then. They still have a ways to go until they're truly great, but they've made strides and it has shown. This was a nice match that was given a surprisingly pleasant amount of time. Bliss going over was the right move to set her up as a credible opponent for Bayley next week.


Andrade "Cien" Almas def. Noah Potjes

Almas is off to a lackluster start on NXT and it's a major shame. He has all the talent in the world and is an excellent wrestler, but having him beat cult favorite Tye Dillinger not once but twice was the kiss of death for him. That's not to say he won't be able to rebound, but it's going to be tougher for him to build a fan following at this point. If the crowd didn't side with him when he was working with an enhancement talent in Potjes, it might be a while before he wins over the faithful at Full Sail University.

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Alexa Bliss takes control of Carmella.

Johnny Gargano and Tomasso Ciampa def. The Hype Bros

I honestly think it might be a matter of time before The Hype Bros are officially brought up to the main roster. Not because they deserve it more than the other tandems but rather because they've faced pretty much everyone in NXT at this point and the main roster could use more teams with the Brand Split going into effect next month. This was the best match I've likely ever seen them have, which shouldn't be shocking considering their opponents were Gargano and Ciampa. They contested a very good match with Gargano and Ciampa furthering their momentum with another victory. The post-match segment with them, American Alpha and The Revival was well done and effectively built toward next week's 2-out-of-3 Falls NXT Tag Team Championship match. We also saw a bit more of The Authors of Pain, so essentially the entire tag division was showcased at the end of this episode.


​Overall Show

None of the three matches jumped out to me on paper, but they all served a purpose and had something to offer. Almas has been underwhelming thus far, but his matches are enjoyable, regardless. The women's division has a solid story going with Bayley's road to redemption and the tag team division is on fire at the moment as well. With a tag title match next week and Finn Balor vs. Shinsuke Nakamura in two weeks, NXT will undoubtedly be must-see in the month of July.

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